After Tu Zhongshu died and the constables and city guards cleared the area, the other three people from the Mount Wu Sword Palace rushed over. When they saw the miserable state of Ye Ning and his companion, they were shocked and furious. They also felt endless regret.
"Junior Brother Ye, how could this happen? Why… Ah!!"
Senior Brother Ji hurriedly stopped Ye Ning's bleeding and injected a stream of pure Qi. After feeding Ye Ning a few healing pills, he saw Ye Ning's rotten right hand and collapsed chest. Tears fell silently.
"Senior… Senior Brother Ji, it's not my fault… You… I… I was too careless."
After Ye Ning finished speaking, he fainted again. Lin Huan'er, who was beside him, was also unconscious.
"Junior Brother, I'll take you home."
Senior Brother Ji was dealt a huge blow. On one hand, he had saved several people and on the other hand, his genius junior brother had almost died on the spot. At that moment, he could no longer care about blame and dissatisfaction. All that was left was grief.
…
Liu Ruyu stood at the corner of the street and paced nervously until the white-robed woman's sword qi was like a rainbow and killed the incomparably hated Tu Zhongshu in one move. He could not help but clap his hands and cheer but he was also a little uneasy.
"Husband, I'm back."
The woman in white had removed the illusion spell on her body and squeezed under Liu Ruyu's umbrella.
"Are you all right, wife?"
"That rapist is only at the fifth level of the Martial Dao. He's not my match."
"However, you once said that as cultivators, especially as foreign races, once you wantonly get involved in killing, it's very easy for something to happen."
Liu Ruyu was just a mortal and did not know anything about cultivation. He just did not want anything to happen to her.
"Husband, it's a long story. I'll explain it to you slowly in the future. However, after killing this rapist today, I only feel that my Dao heart is clear. I should have accumulated some karma and not be tainted by anything bad.
"Moreover, that pervert dared to act fierce in front of Mr. Su. It's only right for me to work for the elders."
"Unfortunately, if the two of us had come to the academy earlier, that young swordsman wouldn't have been seriously injured."
Liu Ruyu said regretfully.
Hu Meiniang chuckled. Her husband had a rough idea of what had happened but his thoughts were off.
"Husband, no wonder everyone says that you're nerds. Look, that young man had a few fellow disciples who chose to save people first and even warned him. In the end, he insisted on chasing after him, giving the old rapist a chance.
Such rapists had fled for many years before being caught. They were often good at disguising themselves. Many hid their martial arts cultivation and pretended to be weak. How could their fellow disciples compare?
As the saying goes, the martial world is dangerous. Today, you and I saved him for a while. In the future, if he doesn't change his mind, he will inevitably encounter greater trouble. The more talented a youth is, the more provocative he is. If he causes trouble, the chances of him being harmed will be higher.
"Husband, you have to remember that whether it's being an official, practicing martial arts, or even seeking immortality, you have to consider the consequences before acting. If you're not careful, you'll lose everything."
Hu Meiniang reminded her husband. As she spoke, she thought of when she first met Mr. Su. If she took a wrong step or faced another immortal, her entire family might suffer.
She was also holding back. For example, if she hadn't seen Mr. Su today, she might not have attacked. Even if she did, she might not have killed anyone.
"This child has suffered some setbacks today. It might not be a bad thing for his future martial arts path. Moreover, some things can be looked back on in a few years. Perhaps there will be another surprise."
Hu Meiniang thought of Mr. Su, who was an unpredictable immortal. She felt that this matter was not over yet despite punishing evil in front of Mr. Su. Although Ye Ning had brought it upon himself, regardless of whether he wanted to be righteous or for his own selfish reasons, in the end, he would still chase after evil and eliminate evil. Perhaps there would be an opportunity waiting for him.
"My wife is right. I was pedantic."
"Alright, husband, we should go to the academy."
After Liu Ruyu and his wife and the five people from the Sword Palace of Mount Wu, left, He Buyu also bid farewell and returned to the academy. Yun Su stopped in his tracks when he passed by the street where the fighting was at.
In Wang Xuanji's eyes, Brother Yun only paused for a moment before continuing forward due to the illusion technique.
In reality, Yun Su stopped and looked at Tu Zhongshu's soul, which was standing there in a daze. He saw countless resentment and hostility increasing from all directions. In the end, they all wrapped around his soul and began to bite it.
Two reapers came closer and shouted.
"Time to hit the road, Tu Zhongshu."
The ghost of Tu Zhongshu was curled up there in a daze. When he heard the shout, he looked up and met Yun Su's gaze. He immediately woke up as if he had been struck by lightning. He screamed in fear but he could not break free from the two ghostly servants.
He was evil when he was alive but after he died, he was just a slightly more ruthless ghost. The countless grievances on his body condensed into vengeful spirits that were bitten and entangled by the vicious aura. Even his soul was being eaten.
"Let me go, let me go, I was wrong, I was wrong, I don't want to die …"
"How unrepentant. The judge won't even bother to interrogate such a vicious person. He is to be brought back and thrown into the purgatory of hell to be tortured."
The two reapers left with the soul of Tu Zhongshu. Yun Su shook his head slightly and returned to the Qingfeng Small Building.
…
In a large guest room at the end of the second floor of an inn south of the city, the members of the Mount Wu Sword Palace anxiously gathered around the bed.
A person was lying on each end of the bed. The girl was fine and had already fallen asleep. Although Ye Ning was not awake, the death aura on his face lessened. It seemed that the medicine and vital energy had taken effect.
Senior Brother Ji sat at the table while Chen Li and Zhang Jiao stood there, apologizing softly.
"Senior Brother Ji, we were wrong. If Zhang Jiao and I hadn't said that during the day, Ye Ning might not have underestimated that old pervert."
"The two of us combined couldn't block that old rapist's sword. Now that I think about it, I'm very ashamed."
"I was supposed to protect you and bring you along in this trial. Now that something has happened, I'm naturally the one who's most responsible. The two of them have suffered this accident because I didn't warn you enough along the way."
Senior Brother Ji waved his hand, indicating that the two of them should not blame themselves. At that time, he could tell that the rapist was skilled in martial arts. After weighing the pros and cons, he ordered them to save people. Chen and Zhang followed him immediately.
"But Senior Brother, will Senior Brother Ye Ning be fine?"
"His life is not in danger. When he returns to the Sword Palace, there is an elder who is good at medicine to treat him personally. It's just that his right hand is crippled. Non-pure Qi and the power of medicinal pills can treat it. In the future, he can only switch to cultivating the sword in his left hand."
Senior Brother Ji did not finish his sentence. It was not difficult to switch from a sword in his right hand to a sword in his left hand but barely being able to use a sword is very much different from using the sword technique to perfection. In addition, his martial arts cultivation had fallen and his temperament had been broken. It was too difficult to recreate his previous talent.
"Then we'll spar with him more in the future and help him recover as soon as possible."
Chen Li made up his mind and Zhang Jiao nodded.
"Senior Brother Ji, who was the woman in white? That Startled Swan Goose Sword was too terrifying."
"I don't know. Rapist Tu was killed in one strike despite being at the fifth level of the Martial Dao. Even a sixth-level expert can't do it. That person's martial arts are so high and her sword technique is so strong that I'm afraid only a few Palace Masters can compare to her. In the martial world, I've never heard of such a talented female swordsman."
Chen Li said: "I didn't expect there to be such an expert in Yuyang City."
"The martial world is filled with crouching tigers and hidden dragons. It's a pity that I don't know the other party's name and who she is. Otherwise, after saving Junior Brother Ye and Junior Sister Lin, our Sword Palace will definitely prepare a generous gift to thank her."
Senior Ji sounded regretful but he comforted her.
"Don't be discouraged. Our Mount Wu Sword Palace has a long history. Since ancient times, there have been legends of sword immortals. The palace masters are also pedantic people who are famous in Yangzhou. As long as you learn sword techniques well, if you encounter such criminals in the future, you can kill them easily."
The three of them talked for a while longer, then fell asleep with their heads on the table.
In a daze, Senior Brother Ji seemed to have returned to the Wenqu Building in his sleep. He was eating when he suddenly saw a white-robed man by the east window smiling at him.
The smile seemed to be imprinted on his mind. It was only a dream but it was crystal clear when he woke up. He couldn't forget it no matter what.
Coincidentally, Ye Ning, who was lying on the bed, had the same dream in his daze.
Meanwhile, in a dilapidated little temple outside the city.
A beggar in ragged clothes had a hint of vigilance in his eyes from time to time. He held a steamed bun in one hand and ate it but his other hand was curled in his arms as if he was pulling something.
"That old rapist, Tu Zhongshu, is finally dead. In the future, I can be considered to have established my own sect and don't have to serve others anymore. Hmph, he's at the fifth level of the Martial Dao but he even hid it from me. If it wasn't for me killing people and setting fires to cooperate with him every time, he might have been exposed long ago."
The beggar spat and sneered. He narrowed his eyes and recalled how he had travelled all over the world with the old rapist all these years. He remembered how many good women he had harmed and how many people he had killed. He even thought about how he would humiliate and kill him next time.
However, he should probably take in a disciple first. That way, he would have someone to cooperate with him when he was happy. The old rapist Tu's method worked very well. It was just that his luck was too bad. He had pushed so many people into the water. It was supposed to be foolproof. After all, those sanctimonious gentlemen in his memory could not bear to see ordinary people die. In the past, when he used this method, no matter if it was killing or arson, it had always worked. He did not expect the old thief to be so unlucky this time.
"Poor me, I have to wear this beggar's robe. It's smelly and itchy. Hiss… Why is it getting itchier and itchier…"
The beggar cursed as he reached in to scratch. It was fine if he didn't scratch it but the more he touched it, the more it itched. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He pulled open his clothes and was stunned. When had there been egg-sized pustules on his body? They were getting bigger and bigger and his body was getting hotter and hotter. It was extremely itchy and the more he touched it, the more uncomfortable it felt. In the end, he lay on the ground, begging for death.
"Help, there are still so many beauties waiting for me. I'm not willing…"
The beggar was in more and more pain. He began to hallucinate. The girls who had harmed and killed in the past seemed to pounce on him and bite him.
The beggar's clothes had been torn by him, revealing his close-fitting brocade clothes. His hands wanted to tear everything apart. There was also a lot of gold and silver scattered on the ground.
Not long after, two ghostly servants entered the temple. When they saw this person, they looked surprised.
"Strange, this beggar is clearly overflowing with death energy but his heart meridians are being protected."
"Look at this person's lifespan. He still has half a day to live. Wait until he dies of pain."
Yun Su stood in the dilapidated temple and did not show his face from the beginning to the end. Seeing that the beggar was in so much pain, he did not pity him at all. Seeing that it was late at night, he stepped on the starlight and strolled back to the city.
He thought about the legendary Sword Immortal of the Mount Wu Sword Palace and thought that if he had the chance in the future, he would make a trip there to broaden his horizons.